Novice

5. krog

Peti krog je bil zelo tesen, saj se je polovica vseh tekem končala z enim samim zadetkom razlike. Seveda so bile tudi izjeme; Boca JBA je nadigrala united min z rezultatom 6-1, Sini Zverove pa so odčitali lekcijo ekipi Kastelin s kar 8-1.

Čeprav so bile vse druge tekme na koncu precej tesne, se je samo ena odločala v podaljšku. Zmagovalno moštvo je bilo Camiseta Blanquirroja, ki je proti nesrečnim Fon Utd FC slavila s 4:3. Fon Utd FC so dominirali skozi praktično celotno srečanje, a 2 poškodbi sta bili vseeno preveč za končni uspeh. Ekipa Spiroezie se je morala soočiti že z drugo ukrajinsko ekipo zapored. FC Granit je odigrat izjemno tekmo, a protinapadi gostov so bili nazadnje le premočni: 2-3.

Trondheim Thunder so povzročili kar nekolikšno razburjenje, vsaj s finančnega vidika. Njihovi nasprotniki, Qirin, izplačujejo kar dvakrat višje plače, a so vseeno morali priznati poraz s 3 proti 0. FK Pirates so ponovno premagali enega izmed tihih favoritov, tokrat moštvo Alderwood Chiefs, ki ni moglo okusiti slasti zmage: 2-1. King Akre so dolgo časa sledili ekipi Diesel 1. FC, a prejeli kar dva zadetka v zadnjih desetih minutah in izgubili s precej bolečim rezultatom 1-4. Romasz, prav gotovo eden večjih favoritov že od začetka tekmovanja dalje, je zopet odigral tesno srečanje. Nasprotnik Garristop je cel čas pritiskal in se krčevito branil, kar je ekipi Romasz povzročalo kar nekaj sivih las. Le 12 minut pred koncem rednega dela pa je moštvu Romasz uspelo zatresti mrežo za zmagovitih 2-1.

Četrtfinale prinaša same veličastne tekme, saj je ostalo le še 8 klubov od začetnih 193-ih. Najzanimivejše tekme se pričakuje med ekipama Spiroezie in vedno odličnimi FK Pirates, ter med do tega trenutka najboljšima kluboma tekmovanja: Boca JBA in Sini Zverove.

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Quarter Finals

Romasz had its first so-called easy victory. After a string of close victories, the last non-European side Camiseta Blanquirroja were beaten with a harsh 8-0. FK Pirates had to press once again, opponent Spiroezie were the winners on midfield. Neither sides managed to gain control over eachothers’ defence, but that didn’t stop Spiroezie from scoring, and winning 4-0.

Trondheim Thunder found counterattacking to be necessary, which resulted in Diesel 1. FC to get alot of scoring opportunities. Trondheim Thunder managed to take the lead but, despite the strong defence, lost 3-1. The big spenders, and possibly favourites, Boca JBA and Sini Zverove fought it out today. Boca JBA also played a counterattack, which made them vulnerable rather than dangerous. Sini Zverove came up 2-0 easily, but Boca JBA came back in the game after one of their strikers got up in the sky to perform a fierce header. In the 2nd half Boca JBA scored the 2-2 goal despite having only 10 men left in the field, and since this was also the only goal in the 2nd half, the game had to go into extra time. The extra time didn’t take long, after only 3 minutes Boca JBA scored the golden goal and thus kicking out Sini Zverove.

The semi finals put Diesel 1. FC up against Spiroezie, and the battle of money between Romasz and Boca JBA. We’re only 2 games away from knowing the winner of this seasons’ Masters!

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Semi Finals

Diesel 1. FC – spiroezie
Diesel 1. FC was this season's Czech team to reach the semi finals, in what seems to become a tradition. The decision was to defend and press against opponent Spiroezie, who in their turn opted for a strong midfield to get as many chances as possible. It showed a 1st half where the visitors were ever so close to getting the lead, but Diesel 1. FC kept their opponents at bay and even got close to scoring themselves. The 2nd half had much of the same, except Spiroezie's mercenary striker Karsten Bomers scored a goal in the 62nd minute. The 0-1 result might suggest that it was a boring game, however it was a nailbiting experience for both sides' fans.

Romasz - Boca JBA
The two teams that spent millions so far to reach this round had to face eachother, Romasz had bought a few more players for this game, leaving Boca JBA with only one tactic: counter. Even though Boca JBA had an impressive counterskill, the game was never really close. It took Romasz 28 minutes to get a 2-0 lead, Boca JBA's attack was just not strong enough to get a goal in, let alone 3. Only 8 minutes in the 2nd half the game was really decided, Romasz had a confident 4-0 lead, Boca JBA had to acquiesce to the defeat. This seemed to be good enough for Romasz and they defended themselves to the eventual 4-0 victory.

Don't forget to tune in for the HT Masters final between tactics (spiroezie) and money (Romasz) next thursday at 20:00 HT Time. May it be a thrilling match, and good luck to both teams.

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FINAL

After 7 rounds and the dismissal of 191 teams it was finally time for the Hattrick Masters final. Polish champions Romasz were one of the favourites on forehand, having spent alot of money prior to the Masters already. Belgian cup winners spiroezie arrived to the final somewhat as a surprise, after they won with only one goal difference a total of 4 times, 1 of these even had to be decided after extra time.

Both teams lined up a full-on squad, neither decided to counter nor press. It took 17 minutes for something to finally happen, and it was a goal straight away, 1-0 for Romasz. The first half went on like it was expected; Romasz creating alot of chances, and eventually scoring the 2-0 goal, Kazanowski’s second of the game. Less expected was the fact that spiroezie was actually the team with more ball possession. In the 2nd half spiroezie got a chance to keep the dream alive, but Romasz’ defence was like a brick wall. The game was really over when spiroezie’s fiery winger Kilpatrick was awarded a 2nd yellow card. Romasz successfully defended their 2-0 lead, becoming the new Hattrick Masters. Opponent spiroezie did an outstanding job, but just fell short in the end. Congratulations to manager Romajack from Romaz!

This seasons’ Masters have been a close one, where both tactics and money were shown to be successful. Hopefully next season will be an even closer battle! I would like to thank everybody taking the time to read every update, the HT-team for giving me the chance to write about the Masters and ofcourse to all LA’s for translating it.